Best Contemporary Mexican Restaurants in Downtown

Excellent lunch option. The burger and BLT are EXCELLENT!

My goodness, this place is incredible! From the really interesting mural on the wall (it's made from pieces of Mexican billboards and touched up regularly from the artist, a local from Austin), to the food, to the tequila, to the very informed and chill waiter - nothing fell short. Here are a few tips I want to share to make your experience top notch. 1.) Get the chicken tacos. You get three and they are small and perfectly Devine with homemade corn tortillas. We had them as an appetizer. It's a must do!! 2.) If you are into tequila, take a look at the epic list and discuss with your wait staff. The staff get educated regularly on different ones. I asked our guy to chose one for me - it was fully women owned and made. Omg - Devine! I sipped it over ice for dessert. Was so smooth and a perfect end to my meal. 3.) We don't like super spicy food so we opted for the chicken dish and ordered green beans as the side. You cut the chicken and use tortillas to made little tacos. We clearly missed that if it was written on the menu. There's fresh cilantro and onion which you can fold in. We also accidentally got the corn dish which we happily accepted and added to the tacos. The big differentiator here was the waiter. He properly informed us of every dish we inquired about. We avoided a few spicy land mines as a result and landed the "perfectly selected food plane"! We were recommended this place by a friend who lived in Austin. Take the locals recommendation! Yum yum yum!

I don’t usually give reviews only if it’s really bad as in to warn people or when it’s really good. Well Este was amazing. Just felt welcomed. Our server was very knowledgeable, personable and confident. Had the sombra margarita and I can say it was the best margarita I have ever had. Smoky, not too sweet, perfect balance of flavors: a pleasure to drink. (Also am not a drinker but I love a good drink to sip over dinner) We had the Este ceviche. Amazing. Other two dishes. All were very well balanced, light, light in salt which was refreshing for a restaurant in Texas. My stomach and soul felt light and happy! Great experience.

Excellent food and atmosphere. It was lively, if not a little loud. We had four items, including the ceviche, brisket tacos, flautas, and sweet potatoes. I would recommend all. They were all super flavorful. The balance of potatoes and duck in the flautas was a little off (too much potato) which made it a little bland, but the mole sauce hit the mark and helped round out the flavor. We would definitely return and try other items.

ATX Cocina has great food, great service, and a wonderful ambience. I love going there for both business and family occasions. It is my favorite restaurant in Austin.